Travel sports are an opportunity for kids to play their favorite sports on a more competitive level. They give the players a chance to improve vastly and play against kids similarly aged and talented.
With this in mind, Chris Gonet created a travel softball team. He has coached all three of his daughters in Waterford North Little League for many years, and has just started coaching his son. This team consists of girls of the ages 13 and 14 from Waterford North, Waterford South, and East Lyme. The name of the team is the East Coast Energy. The colors of their uniform is navy blue and orange.
The team has been practicing together twice a week since february. They have an upcoming scrimmage tournament to start their season this weekend in Lowell, Massachusetts. They will have 5 more tournaments throughout the year and other scrimmages/games. Along with these girls playing their own towns’ recreational leagues for their towns in the summer, they will be traveling throughout Connecticut and other parts of New England. Already, the girls on the team have overcome their town rivalries to play together on the same team.
When I asked Coach Gonet what inspired him to create the team, he answered, “I have coached many of these girls for years. With the amount of girls willing to play in these towns, it was easy to get the team filled. These girls are very talented, and I would like them to play in a more competitive setting.”
Coach Gonet also stressed to me about how he was doing this 100% for the girls. He is not looking to get anything out of this, besides making his players better. He is a father of four, and coaching this team for his own pleasure. Like he isn’t busy enough already, he spends his time teaching these girls and making them better at what they love, which is the game of softball.
I think this team was a great idea to put together. I have played travel baseball before and it has helped me greatly. I am very happy to see my sister also having the opportunity to play competitive ball with her friends. This team will allow the girls to play throughout the summer and become better players. It is commendable that Mr. Gonet is dedicating so much of his time to helping these girls do what they love.
